Most "open-source alternative" lists stop at a link to a repo. You click, you find a half-finished README, and you're on your own.
We built LibreHub with a stricter rule: if you can't rebuild it, it isn't really free.
What LibreHub is
LibreHub is a directory of free, open-source web apps and PWAs that replace paid software. You can browse by category, or start from the tool you're paying for today, e.g. alternative to Yazio or alternative to Foodvisor.
Before an app is published, we check four things:
- A libre license
- A live app you can use right now, no "coming soon"
- A declared database, so you know what you'll be hosting
- A regeneration prompt
Why a regeneration prompt?
This is the part we care about most.
Every listed app comes with a document that describes it end to end (intent, features, data model, screens, behaviours) without referencing its codebase. It's written so that you, or a coding agent, can rebuild a functionally equivalent app from scratch.
That changes a few things:
- No dead repos. If the original project is abandoned, the app can still be recreated.
- Real self-hosting. You're not forced to adopt someone else's stack. Regenerate it with the one you already run.
- Forking by description. Want the same app with one feature changed? Edit the prompt, not 40 files.
In other words, the prompt is the "source" that survives the code.
First app: Fourchette
The first listed app is Fourchette, a free, ad-free nutrition tracker that replaces the premium tiers of Yazio and Foodvisor:
- barcode scanning backed by OpenFoodFacts
- food journal and macro tracking
- calorie goals computed from your profile
- weight curve and a "craving alert"
It's a PWA (React + NestJS + MongoDB), installable from the browser. Its listing shows the stack, the checks it passed and its full regeneration prompt.
Built something free? Put it in front of people
If you vibe code or hand-code apps that replace paid tools, LibreHub gives them:
- a dedicated page: demo, stack, repo link, regeneration prompt
- visitors who are actively searching for an alternative to the tool you replace
- businesses posting real needs, which can turn a side project into paid work
One rule to get in: the app must be free.
👉 Submit your app
No idea what to build next? The community votes on which paid tools should get a free alternative.
We'd love feedback: what would make you trust (or distrust) a regeneration prompt as the "source of truth" for an app?
This post was written with AI assistance.
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